Sustainability and Education Policy Network

Climate change is robbing millions of children of their future.
Rising temperatures, floods, droughts, and natural disasters are disrupting education worldwide. Climate change disproportionately impacts children in vulnerable communities, pushing them out of school and deepening inequality.

The time to act is now. We need to transform education systems to address these climate realities — through curriculum reform, resilient school infrastructure, and teacher training.

We must ensure that every child, no matter their background or location, has the opportunity to . Let’s build a future where education empowers children to face climate challenges.

➡️ Learn how in the Education and Climate Change paper by and Sustainability and Education Policy Network's Project: https://bit.ly/ccec2024

"Queensland Museum has been accused of misleading teachers and children about the root cause of the climate crisis through a multimillion-dollar education partnership with one of the world’s biggest oil and gas companies.

Shell’s Queensland Gas Company has been sponsoring the museum’s Future Makers learning program since 2015 and produces teaching materials as well as running free professional development courses for teachers.

But a review of the program’s climate change materials carried out by climate advocacy group Comms Declare claimed they ignore the root cause of the climate crisis: the burning of fossil fuels, including gas."

Queensland Museum accused of misleading teachers and children about the cause of climate change Education program sponsored by Shell’s Queensland Gas Company is ‘climate obstruction dressed up as education’, advocacy group says

Check out this event being held by our fabulous partner North American Association for Environmental Education - NAAEE next week!

AI is quickly changing how we teach and how we learn. Whether you're curious, cautious, or already comfortable navigating AI technology and tools, we invite you to join this GEEP webinar to explore what AI could mean for environmental education. Hear perspectives from around the world and share your questions in “Exploring AI Together: A Conversation for Environmental Educators” on December 17 at 12:00 PM ET.

Register at bit.ly/AIandGlobalEE

As a major achievement of our partnership work, this Project indicator has been formally accepted to monitor Global SDG Indicator 4.7.1b, which measures greening content in countries’ national curriculum frameworks and grade 3, 6, and 9 science and social science curricula.

👉 Learn more about the indicator in this post by Manos Antoninis (GEM Report Unesco), Aaron Benavot (University at Albany), and Marcia McKenzie (The University of Melbourne Melbourne).

👉 Visualize the indicator data on the interactive data platform at https://mecce.ca/data-platform/.

👉 Access the indicator data on the UNESCO Institute for Statistics website at https://databrowser.uis.unesco.org/.

This indicator was the result of a tremendous collaborative effort! We are grateful to the GEM Report and UIS for championing the indicator with the SDG4 Education Data and Statistics Commission and Inter-Agency and Expert Group on SDG Indicators. The data for this indicator were in part developed thanks to commissioned studies with and for UNESCO.

Many thanks to Research Coordinator Aaron Redman, Senior Project Manager Nicola Chopin, and all the other Project team members who contributed to the design and development of this indicator!

How green is your curriculum?
Education systems worldwide are adapting to prepare younger generations for the environmental and climate challenges shaping our future.

A new greening curriculum indicator, now part of global indicator 4.7.1, measures how far countries have integrated sustainability, climate change and biodiversity into their curricula.

Developed by the , the Monitoring and Evaluating Climate Communication and Education ( ) project, and the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, this indicator offers the first objective measure of how environmental themes are embedded in education.

The findings so far are revealing:
- Environmental and sustainability themes appear far more often than climate change or biodiversity.
- Green content is stronger in upper grades than in primary education.
- Curriculum frameworks and subject syllabi often tell different stories about national priorities.
- Post-2015 curricula show greater environmental integration than older ones.

🟢 The global average score stands at 40 out of 100, showing that while momentum is building, much remains to be done for .

By identifying where gaps remain, this indicator helps countries align education systems with global climate and sustainability goals, building the knowledge, skills and values needed for a sustainable future.

➡️ Explore more in the by Manos Antoninis, GEM Report Director, Aaron Benavot, University at Albany-SUNY, and Marcia McKenzie, University of Melbourne:
https://bit.ly/4nYTveV

This neat resource by the Climate Mental Health Network was designed to support intergenerational conversations about .

Climate change impacts us all—but the way we talk about it can bring us closer together. The guide can spark meaningful conversations to help families and communities build resilience, empathy, and hope, together.

Available in English and Spanish.

https://www.climatementalhealth.net/_files/ugd/be8092_f93fa0e661364532ae48ead2b1c205d5.pdf

Learn about the new Postgraduate Specialization Program in Education for Sustainability offered by the UNESCO Chair at Universidad de San Andrés​!

An information session will be held in Spanish on October 7 at 6:00 p.m. (GMT-3).

To register for the information session, visit https://eventos.udesa.edu.ar/140195/detail/reunion-informativa-especializacion-en-educacion-para-la-sostenibilidad.html.

This fully online program is designed for professionals from a wide range of fields — formal and non-formal education, public management, the private sector, civil society, and international organizations — who are engaged with the challenges and opportunities of Education for Sustainability. The 1.5 year long program is in Spanish and will start in late February 2026.

Read our latest paper!

"Fossil fuel interests, climate obstructionism, and higher education policy: A critique of the Australian Universities Accord" was co-authored by Andrew Deuchar and Marcia McKenzie of the hashtag Project.

Through a critical analysis of the Australian Universities Accord, the paper suggests how it: i) was formed with significant input from fossil fuel actors, networks, and interests; ii) supports climate solutions that tighten links between industry and higher education; and iii) proposes a new governance mechanism that will ensure fossil fuel interests continue to exert influence on the higher education sectorThrough a critical analysis of the Australian Universities Accord, the paper suggests how it: i) was formed with significant input from fossil fuel actors, networks, and interests; ii) supports climate solutions that tighten links between industry and higher education; and iii) proposes a new governance mechanism that will ensure fossil fuel interests continue to exert influence on the higher education sector.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00958964.2025.2542945

Fossil fuel interests, climate obstructionism, and higher education policy: A critique of the Australian Universities Accord This article examines how national higher education policy can obfuscate the need for effective climate action. It critiques the Australian Universities Accord, a recent policy aimed at creating an...

Participate in a global survey on foundational learning!

📢 Take part in the global survey on foundational learning!
Data are the foundation for better education policies. Yet, too often, gaps in evidence hold back progress on .

Mokoro Ltd. and Oxford MeasurEd, on behalf of the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), are conducting a global survey to gather views from education ministries, sector organizations and development partners.

Your insights will feed into the Mid-Term Evaluation of the Data for Foundational Learning (D4FL) Programme and inform education priorities for the years ahead.

The survey is available in English, French and Spanish and takes around 12 minutes. All responses remain confidential.

👉 Take the survey here: https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/8405160/Data-for-Foundational-Learning

Hot off the press!

Beginning with , UN Climate Change will require all non-government participants to:

1) Publicly disclose who is directly funding their participation at COP; and
2) Publicly confirm in writing that their individual objectives are in full alignment with the , , and .

This information will be publicized in the list of participants.

The change is being made to help address big polluter interference in climate policymaking, and was the result of sustained campaigning from Kick Big Polluters Out and UNFCCC rights-based constituencies.

A press release, including quotes from partners, is available at:

RELEASE: UN climate regime responds to civil society pressure to address Big Polluter interference in climate action | Kick Big Polluters Out It’s been more than two years since the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) took its long overdue first steps to address industry interference in international climate policymaking by requiring all participants to disclose industry ties. Today– as a result of sustained...

On September 24, the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations of Canada is holding the inaugural First Nations Summit for Advancing Global Sustainable Futures.

The Summit is a two-day gathering focused on Nation-led sustainability projects and solutions. First Nations leadership, youth, Elders, and knowledge holders, alongside governments, industry, and researchers will share knowledge, strengthen partnerships, and advance reconciliation through action.

Registration is free for First Nations Leadership and Technicians, Youth, Elders, Knowledge Holders and First Nations Citizens. Industry, research and government representatives are welcome to attend for a registration fee of $500.

Learn more at

First Nations Summit

A neat student-led approach to review how sustainability is being integrated into the curriculum of higher education institutions, offered by Students Organising for Sustainablity UK. An international version is also available.

Responsible Futures - Embedding sustainability in all student learning at universities in the UK and Internationally Responsible Futures is a supported change programme and accreditation partnering students with their universities and colleges to embed sustainability in all student learning delivered by SOS-UK.

UN Climate Change is looking for real-world, implemented climate solutions, that are practical and replicable.

Let's get climate change education and climate change communication - which is known as Action for Climate Empowerment under the Paris Agreement - integrated into this process!

The deadline for contributions is tomorrow!


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Send your contributions to take part in the Implementation Labs at Climate Week 2 in Addis Ababa, a space for hands-on exchanges between climate actors and policymakers.

The focus areas:
🟢 Agriculture
🟢 Carbon markets
🟢 Energy transition and access
🟢 Forests
🟢 Sustainable cities

Selected solutions will be presented in person as kick-off examples to guide discussions around challenges, enablers, and opportunities for scaling impact on the ground. They will also feed into the COP30 Granary of Solutions — showcasing scalable actions aligned with global goals.

📅 Apply by 8 August to be part of this unique opportunity.
🔗 http://bit.ly/44X1B1o

Fill | 2025 UNFCCC Climate Week 2 | Implementation Labs - Call for Solutions Background: The UNFCCC Climate Week 2 will host Implementation Labs focusing on accelerating cooperative climate action through practical, problem-solving exchanges. To ground these sessions in real-world action and meaningful collaboration, the UNFCCC secretariat is calling for real-world,& #16...